Business…here’s this morning’s AM Jump.
Well, Bush is trying to pass another foolish racist off on the federal bench. This time, the dude’s name is Leslie Southwick. Check this here commentary on him.
The 5th Circuit is made up of Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi. According to the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, it is the federal judicial circuit with the highest percentage of minority residents.
So it seems axiomatic that the 5th Circuit does not need a judge who appeared untroubled when a white government employe referred to an African-American co-worker as “a good ole nigger.”
As a member of the Mississippi Court of Appeals, Southwick was in the 5-4 majority that voted to uphold the reinstatement of the white worker.
That was such an egregious decision that it was overturned unanimously — repeat, unanimously — by the Mississippi Supreme Court — repeat, Mississippi.
It’s interesting to note that the state hearing officer in the reinstatement case contended that the patently offensive phrase was used by the white employee as an equivalent of “teacher’s pet.”
Huh?
Yeah buddy. Two things here. First, there’s no way in the world anyone is legally entitled to the right to call someone a nigger at work. None.
But let’s go another step, one that says all that need be said about this Southwick character. The fact that he could even intimate that “nigger” is akin to “teacher’s pet” says a lot. By equating those terms, he’s saying that this slur against black people indicates, by definition, subservience. Further, it’s almost impossible to argue against the notion that Southwick thinks that black subservience is how things should be.
The black “anti-nigger” machine can step up and talk about how horrible the world is all the time. Feel free, but I don’t think that’s got much to do with this one. The argument over whether this is ever a friendly term has no place here because it was clearly not used as a friendly term in this case. Even if it was intended to be used the same way as “teacher’s pet,” it wasn’t nobody’s friendly.
And this is who Dubya wants on the appeals court. Now, remind me again why people got upset when Kanye West said Bush didn’t care about black people?
Someone with a legal mind is needed…could I get away with kicking someone’s ass at work for saying something like this? I figure if I asked the dude to repeat himself that I’d establish pre-meditation. But if I just flew across the table, would I be okay?
*makes note to blush and say thank you next time someone calls me a nigger*
I don’t know why people don’t understand that systematic institutional racism exists when there are examples like these.
Okay, I’m going to offer a quasi-legal very fuzzy opinion on hypothetical posed…First, for civil liability for the employer, there would need to be more than just a single comment, it would have to be a pattern of behavior that created a hostile work environment and management failed to appropriately act. As far as criminal liability, words alone are rarely adequate provocation. Those words would likely have to be coupled with an imminent threat of physical harm to buttress a self defense claim. Also, the law varies by state (and circuit)…
As long as there are people who use the word is this context (and there always will be) Black people are fools for believing we can use it in a “friendly” context.
Can you please let me know of another hateful word that has a second, “friendly” connotation? Kike? Nope. Spic? Nah. Faggot? Never. Why is our word different?
exactly Skelow73, exactly. Some things just aren’t meant to be watered down and friendly.
My 2 cents:
-This cat is a racist and shouldn’t be brought in at all. Dubya and all his cronies….coondilliza included are good ol’boys.
-The Baby Boomers can front all they want to, but the reality is that they are the one’s who made it OK to say the N word. Red Fox, Moms Mabley and Richard Pryor made it “ok”. Al Sharpperm can front all he wants, but hip hop didn’t introduce the N word to wax.
-And for thinking he can stop people from using the N word by donating soap to a womens shelter……he gets the coveted “Nigga Please Award”!!
Skelow,
I can’t stand the word. Never use it. But it’s just not true that those other hateful words don’t have friendly uses in certain contexts–A number of gay people call eachother “fags” or “dykes” in a friendly way. It’s true of other slurs too.
The problem I had with Kanye West is that he said it during a benifit for Katrina victims. Say it ANY other time.
And many other races were affected. My own relatives. George Bush hates poor people if you ask me.
Only one-and-a-half more years of Bush! Hope we can hang on by our fingernails until then. The only problem is after Bush leaves, his Supreme Court appointees stay. Talk about a shit stain on the carpet you can’t get out…